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Are Your Goals SMART?

Guest post by: Edward Abel

Article Overview: Research has shown that the most successful people are those who regularly set goals. Most people would not start out on a trip without some kind of a map or GPS navigational system on board, yet many people run their businesses with very little directional assistance. This can cause a lot of wasted time and energy, sometimes going in circles or going in a direction that becomes a dead end. You'll end up somewhere, but will it be where you want to end up?

Are Your Goals SMART?

Research has shown that the most successful people are those who regularly set goals. Most people would not start out on a trip without some kind of a map or GPS navigational system on board, yet many people run their businesses with very little directional assistance. This can cause a lot of wasted time and energy, sometimes going in circles or going in a direction that becomes a dead end. You'll end up somewhere, but will it be where you want to end up? When creating your goals, you should follow a standard format called SMART goals. The SMART format identifies five criteria that are needed to ensure a goal is truly effective.

Specific: Specificity is important in writing goals. That's because specific goals create focus and clarity - they have a laser-like quality. They articulate exactly what needs to happen in order to achieve the results you want. Instead of writing a vague goal, such as... "Offer more products to customers." ...make the goal specific... "Increase the number of available products from 7 to 10."

1. How easy or challenging is it?
2. Do I have the necessary resources to accomplish the goal?

Relevant: A SMART goal needs to be relevant to your business. A goal that is relevant to your business relates to your business either strategically or functionally. Strategic goals bring your business strategy to life. They are the "big picture" or "high level" goals that come directly out of your business strategy. They usually require two or more sub-goals in order to accomplish them.

Time-Oriented: Although the "T" of SMART appears at the end of the acronym, the time-orientation of your goal is just as important to consider. Time-oriented goals answer the questions, How often? or By when? For example:

• How often: Deliver at least 75% of employee reviews on a quarterly basis.
• By when: Deliver all employee reviews by June 30.

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Article Tags: available products, clarity, different things, directional assistance, going in circles, li li, map, measurable goal, navigational system, necessary resources, smart goals, specificity, strategica, vague goal, writing goals



Related Forum Posts
Re: Set goals that motivate you! - Sounds simple enough when you take it at face value, but what are goals? Are these short term or long term Goals, Are theses goal realistic, achievable? How to make them motivating Goals, What is motivation? Is motivation the same for all of us Hmm so many questions, so few answers. must a an article in this somewhere Btw (by the way) GT, nice Blog
Re: $200,000 in 91 days - You have setup a SMART goal. But, is this realistic. I doubt. Anyway will wait till March to hear from you.
I could use some help with my Marketing Plan Objective - Hi guys, Well I'm off to the UK be back to work on April 10th. In the meantime, I could use some help. My Marketing Plan Objective is definitely not SMART. It doesn't have anything specific, or measurable, it is achievable, it is realistic and it is timed. You're help will be appreciated. Hope to tallk to you in April and see you in May. Judi
Re: Alexa Ranking Goals - Thanks GT! This is still the right post for Alexa Goals but everything else can go to Kevin's Mastermind post! Cheers!
Re: Alexa Ranking Goals - Hi Timothy, It's good to see a new "competitor" on our Alexa Ranking Goals list. Good luck in your efforts to improve your website Alexa rankings. David


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